The date is set; May 29th. The route is as planned as it will ever be [click here to view]. Considering this, it leaves me around ten months left for pre-production, which hopefully isn't unrealistic.
 
I'm waiting for two fuel chafers to arrive in the mail, I need to mount them onto a board that extends out just below the camera's lens for a test shot. I'm hoping the effect will be the rippling heat waves you see in wide dessert shots, but in this case; constant and up-close. If all goes as planned, it will be used in key scenes for proj: pedal; to constantly reassure the audience that; "yes, don't forget: it's unbearably fucking hot out here in the dessert... when you've been biking for 80 plus miles, when all your bottled water is hot and your throat is dry, when your new box of chewy bars has melted all over your bike bags." I plan on posting the test shots as soon as possible -- but keep in mind; it's snail mail.

I'm getting off topic here; I started this "multi-tasking" entry to announce something completely different. Although, having just expressed my worries of an "unrealistic" deadline, I hope this decision isn't setting myself up for disaster.
 
Regardless; my decision is: I don't want to over load myself with proj: pedal. Meaning that; yes, I have ten months left, but my main worry isn't that I won't plan or prepare enough -- my main worry is that seven months into it, I'll forget what it is I'm trying to say with the film. That, with three months left to go; my focus will have become so narrow, I'll be blind to new and interesting ideas. I think it's good to walk away from something for short periods of time to give your mind a chance to look at things from a fresh angle.
 
But I don't think "vegging out" will do the trick, I'm going to work on short films -- projects that might play at small independent festivals and help build a [very, very mini] following for proj: pedal. But even if it doesn't accomplish that, it will allow me to get behind the camera and stay goal oriented at the same time. Not to mention, proj: pedal still needs a crew, and random short projects would / will be a great way to branch out.
 
So that's it. That's my announcement. Exciting, eh? Proj: pedal should have it's own website up and running soon, give it another month.